AROUND THE GREENS
Planos offers advice, comfort after Wie loss

By Bill Kwon

Michelle Wie says she learned from her loss in the finals of the U.S. Women's Amateur Public Links Championships and hopes to translate that into success at the U.S. Women's Open, which begins today. Associated Press

So all of us who have lived longer than 14 years can empathize with Michelle Wie when she cried in disappointment after failing to defend her title in the U.S. Women's Amateur Public Links Championship on Sunday at Williamsburg, Va., losing 1-up to Taiwan's Ya-Ni Tseng.

"Golf," as sports psychologist Bob Rotella said, "is not a game of perfect." He liked the line so much that he used it as the title of his book.

"In golf, you'll have more failures than successes. Just ask Tiger Woods," said Lori (Castillo) Planos, who remains the only back-to-back women's Public Links champion from Hawai'i.

Was she pulling for Wie to match her achievement?

"Absolutely," said Planos, the local Ping golf equipment representative who won her titles in 1979 and 1980. "I was sad that she lost. I thought for sure that she would win. But she's got to learn to not let this failure affect you."

Planos hopes that Wie will use that disappointing loss as a learning experience to get even better.

Wie feels she will.

"You learn a lot more when you lose than when you win because when you win, you're just so happy and you think you're so good," Wie said at a USGA press conference Tuesday.

Still, she admitted that the loss was painful.

"Well, I think I cried because I wanted to win," she said. "No one wanted to win that tournament more than me ... it just came out."

Wie recounted the first time she cried on a golf course. It was during her first Public Links appearance at age 10.

Castillo admires Wie's plan of playing against the best possible competition, noting that one only gets better by playing against the best.

Planos points out, though, that playing against the best means not winning most of the time.

"It's easy to play if you've got nothing to lose. No one's expecting anything. It's different when people expect you to win," Planos said. "That's why it was harder for her to defend her title. Everybody expects you to win. And people want to knock you down. She has to learn to deal with that kind of pressure and it's good that she's learning it now."

Planos, also the first local golfer to compete in the Curtis Cup, recalled her own learning experiences.

Although she won the U.S. Junior Girls title the year before, Planos surprised many with her victory in the 1979 Public Links at Edina, Minn. When it came to defending her title the following summer in Pennsylvania, at first she told her father, pro Ron Castillo, that she didn't want to go.

"I didn't want to make a fool of myself. Now I had so much to lose because everybody expected me to win."

Dad persuaded her to go, telling her, "Whatever happens, happens."

"I went with the goal of proving that the first one was no fluke," Planos said. And she was glad she did.

Oh, there was a try for a three-peat in the 1981 Public Links in Oregon, but by then her thinking was, "That's OK if I lose because I proved what I wanted to prove."

She lost early in the week.

But, hey, remember, golf is not a game of perfect and knowing that comes with maturity.

"You have to deal with that kind of pressure," Planos said. "I did things at 19 that Michelle is doing at 14."

Wie now goes from one pressure cooker to another. This time, all eyes are on her in the 59th U.S. Women's Open beginning today at the Orchards Golf Club in South Hadley, Mass.

No one is expecting Wie to win the most prestigious women's golf tournament in the world.

However, because she received a special exemption to the U.S. Women's Open from the sponsoring USGA, everyone expects her to make a good showing.

But even making the cut and finishing in the top 10 might not quite silence some critics, particularly disgruntled LPGA players sitting out this week.

No matter how she fares this week, it's unlikely that you will see Wie crying again, at least not because of disappointment. The circumstances are totally different.

Despite coming off an emotional week, Wie is looking forward to the Women's Open. Playing just 18 holes a day this week should be a snap after last week's exhausting 154 holes of golf, including 36 holes in the qualifying and the final.

That's not counting the 36-hole qualifying for the men's Public Links and the four Curtis Cup matches the previous two weeks.

If Michelle's a wee bit tired after such a physically and demanding stretch of golf, who can blame her?

But, ah, the resiliency of youth. She's more than happy to tee it up once again.

Bill Kwon can be reached at bkwon@aloha.net.